Calls President Xi Jinping Not Smart Enough And Asks Him To Resign: China's Civil Rights Advocate Tried In Private Trials, Charges With Subverting Power

Presiden China Xi Jinping. (Wikimedia Commons/Presidential Press and Information Office)

JAKARTA - A prominent Chinese civil rights advocate who once asked President Xi Jinping to step down because he wasn't smart enough was tried behind closed doors Wednesday on charges of subverting state power.

The move comes as the ruling Communist Party is doubling down on stifling dissent, ahead of a landmark meeting this fall, when Xi is expected to further tighten his grip on power with an almost unprecedented third term.

Xu Zhiyong, a veteran civil rights activist and law scholar, appeared before a local court in Linshu county, eastern Shandong province early Wednesday, in a trial closed to the public, arguing that "it involves state secrets."

A person with direct knowledge of the case said before the trial, Xu was determined to plead not guilty. Supporters and rights groups have called the trial "grossly unfair" and the allegations "fabricated."

"Such a political case has nothing to do with law or evidence. The whole trial process is dominated by the political power behind the court," said Teng Biao, a prominent Chinese human rights lawyer now based in the United States, quoted by CNN June 23.

"This is a political trial and political persecution," he criticized.

Teng said Xu was likely to receive a severe sentence, as this would be the second time he has been jailed. In 2014, Xu was sentenced to four years in prison for "gathering crowds to disturb public order."

"For political prisoners, the second prison sentence is usually longer than the first," said Teng.

Xu, 49, was detained in February 2020 in the southern city of Guangzhou after spending nearly two months in hiding. He was one of several rights activists arrested by authorities after a closed-door meeting in the southeastern city of Xiamen in December 2019.

Xu Zhiyong. (Twitter/@CHRDnet)

While on the run, Xu issued an open letter addressed to President Xi, asking him to resign. Openly calling for a leader to step down is a particularly risky move in China, where political dissent is tightly suppressed and severely punished, especially under President Xi.

In his letter, Xu launched a scathing attack on President Xi's policies, from the Communist Party's tightening control of the economy to his suppression of freedoms in Hong Kong and his handling of the early COVID outbreak in Wuhan.

"I don't think you're a bad person. You're just not smart enough," he wrote. "Therefore, I urge you once again, which I believe is also a widely held sentiment: Mr Xi Jinping, please step down."

Teng, a US-based legal activist, said the open letter may have led to Xu being charged with subversion, the most serious political offense, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

"(Since) Xi came to power, he has strengthened his dictatorship and promoted a cult of personality around himself. It is very bold for Xu to write a letter calling for President Xi's resignation in China, but of course, the authorities will never tolerate such a thing." Teng said.

"The Chinese authorities have targeted Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi, not because they committed an internationally recognized crime, but simply because they hold views that the government does not like. This unfair trial is a horrific attack on their human rights," the campaigner said. China Amnesty International Gwen Lee.

"After facing torture and other ill-treatment during their arbitrary detention, Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi now face years behind bars in a secret trial that was rigged from the start."